champagne

(Newser) -
Instead of honoring America's fallen war veterans, Ivanka Trump's lifestyle brand suggested that Memorial Day is a perfect time to make popsicles—and is taking no small amount of flak for it. CNN reports the backlash was "icy" after IvankaTrumpHQ tweeted a tip to "Make champagne...
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(Newser) -
"Come for the sale ... Stay for the sexy fantasy chicks!" That's the way TMZ plugs a bizarre video trying to sell what's being touted as Beverly Hills' most expensive home: a $100 million retreat called Opus, the brainchild of film producer Nile Niami, per People . The...
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Armand de Brignac sells the 'Ace of Spades' bubbly he loves

(Newser) -
Multiple outlets are reporting that Jay Z recently bought the Armand de Brignac champagne company, maker of his flashy favorite drink—you might recognize the shiny gold bottles of its $300-a-pop champagne from the rapper's "Show Me What You Got" music video . But the real story is a...
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Europe isn't snapping up the bubbly like it used to

(Newser) -
Whether it's a stand-in for Europe's spirits or its wallets, the message is the same: It's been a rather gloomy 2012, at least according to Champagne sales, with shipments of the bubbly down 5% in the first three quarters. And though a holiday bump will occur per...
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But this year's bubbly won't be affected

(Newser) -
Wet weather and hailstorms combined to make this year's Champagne harvest—the real capital C stuff from France—the worst in 40 years, reports BloombergBusinessweek . Damaged vineyards in the Champagne region yielded 40% fewer grapes this year, says an industry spokesman in Paris. The only good news is that...
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Or get a massage with your teeth cleaning

(Newser) -
Who said going to the dentist had to be boring and/or terrifying? A dental office in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, has turned getting your teeth inspected into a luxurious event, complete with champagne, massages, and a personal concierge who will make you limo and dinner reservations, reports the Sun Sentinel . Dr....
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Mystery customer racks up birthday bash bill in Dubai

(Newser) -
A jug of wine, a $105,000 bar tab, and thou. That could have been the bar manager's sweet ode to a mystery customer who paid the mammoth single-visit bar tab without blinking an eye. The tab—which included, among other goodies , a $35,000 six-liter bottle of Cristal...
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Plus a few truths...

(Newser) -
You probably memorized many of these drinking tips before you could legally drink. Thing is, a number of them are false. In an article excerpted from New Scientist, the Washington Post busts a few myths ... and confirms a few others. Things that just aren't true:

Bottles of 200-year-old bubbly found in shipwreck

(Newser) -
How does champagne taste after spending around 200 years at the bottom of the sea? “The flavors that came to my mind were yeast, honey and—dare I say—a hint of manure,” writes Louise Nordstrom of the AP , one of 20 people invited to taste two of...
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Hong Kong woman arrested for accidental splash at Nobel celebration

(Newser) -
A woman was arrested in Hong Kong yesterday for accidentally splashing a guard while she commemorated Liu Xiaobo's Nobel Peace Prize win with some bubbly. Ip Ho-yee, 22, was celebrating outside China's main government office in Hong Kong when her celebratory champagne splashed an unsuspecting guard. "It was a...
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Tilt the glass, as if you were pouring a beer

(Newser) -
For the best-tasting bubbly, pour your champagne into a tilted glass. So says a team of French scientists, who claim that the traditional straight pour allows too many gas bubbles to escape. It's those bubbles that give champagne its taste and aroma, explains the AP . Also, a cold bottle helps....
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Likely from the 1780s, the 30-some bottles could fetch $68K each

(Newser) -
Now that's some vintage bubbly. Divers have discovered what is thought to be the world's oldest drinkable champagne in a shipwreck in the Baltic Sea, one of the finders said Saturday. They sampled the one bottle—believed to be from the 1780s—they've brought up so far before they even...
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Father's birthday gift comes a quarter-century after it's mailed

(Newser) -
Frank Digoria thought his dad was "flipping out" when he received a bottle of champagne in the mail from him in January. Not only was his birthday a month past, but the card from Frank Sr. also mentioned a now-deceased wife. Turns out, Frank Sr. sent the bottle in...
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Fizzy bits hold up to 30 times the flavor as rest of drink, study finds

(Newser) -
It turns out the bubbles are indeed the most important part of “the bubbly.” According to a new study, most of a champagne’s flavor comes from its bubbles, which contain up to 30 times more flavorful chemicals than the rest of the drink. It’s a watershed...
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Price does matter, but it's possible to find exciting varieties

(Newser) -
Chardonnay is ubiquitous, but the “countless weak versions,” especially in the $10 category, disappoint wine lovers, writes Eric Arnold in Forbes. Nevertheless, Americans gulped down about 60 million 9-liter cases in 2008. If you’re willing to beef up your budget and experiment a bit, you may be...
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Hanky panky, champagne would boost funding: historian

(Newser) -
Why should flight attendants have all the fun? A respected NASA historian is proposing that astronauts too should join the mile-high club, Bloomberg reports. “Sex in space, now there’s an experiment scientists certainly want to conduct,” James Hansen declared in a lecture at the 100th Paris Air...
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Don't fret: new metal cork will still create pop and fizz

(Newser) -
Fed up with imperfect corks tainting its high-end Champagne, one French winemaker is tossing tradition aside in favor of a—gasp!—aluminum cork. BBC reports. Before you faint in horror, Duval-Leroy stresses that this is no screw-top cap: the new plug will make the same pop and spray a...
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Italian bubbly makers hope to edge out pricey champagne

(Newser) -
Sales of Italy's answer to champagne have been bubbling up for years, Reuters writes, but prosecco producers plan to boost output to 250 million bottles next year, with an eye on someday overtaking champagne as the world's favorite sparkling wine. The bubbly is cheaper to make than its French rival,...
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